1. Field of the Invention
This invention includes methods and apparatus relating generally to browsing markup language documents across a network from within the context of a client application program, and specifically to restricting access only to allowed network resources and to allowed browser interface functions.
2. Description of Related Art
The public Internet and private intranets allow client programs on one computer to exchange information with server programs on other computers. World Wide Web (WWW) browsers are a type of client program that provide easy-to-use, virtually standardized, graphical access for browsing hypertext information formatted in markup language documents.
However, most business applications perform other non-browsing tasks and require specialized interfaces. Attempts to provide a browser-like interface for application-oriented business tasks are likely to lead to undesirable user interfaces. See, e.g., Nielson, 1998, xe2x80x9cDoes Internet=Web?xe2x80x9d, Jakob Nielson""s Alertbox for Sep. 20, 1998. For example, e-mail applications like Lotus Notes, Outlook Express or Eudora are more professional with greater functionality than simple browser-like WWW e-mail interfaces (e.g., Hotmail). Likewise, other vertical market stand-alone business applications provide more features and functions than can be supported in a standard browser.
However, it is often useful to provide for markup language browsing while remaining in the application context. In one alternative, the application may have a sub-window with some of the functionality of a standard browser. This window is not a separate window but is an embedded window that is an integral part of the application. Such a feature allows browsing of hypertext information without needing to exit the application and starting a separate browser application, such as Navigator of Netscape Corp. or Internet Explorer of Microsoft.
Accessing and displaying markup language documents in the application context is typically different from standard browsing sessions. In standard browsing, a user can enter any Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) or click on any displayed link to access any desired content or resource. See, e.g., Internet Engineering Task Force, 1994, Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) RFC 1738; Internet Engineering Task Force, 1995, Relative Uniform Resource Locatorsxe2x80x94RFC 1808. However, in order to remain productive, browsing from the application context, should typically be focused and related to the application. For example, it can be more productive to permit access only to relevant documents and resources.
Accordingly, it is important that any browser functionality embedded in the application context be configurable for focused productive use.
Markup languages are widely used, especially for Internet content. Generally, markup languages are documents with text, images, and embedded markup tags which specify the desired display formatting of the document. In the past, Internet markup language hypertext documents have been largely limited to the Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). However, new markup languages are being introduced for specialized and general use. For example, special markup languages are being developed which are designed for use in consumer appliances. A newer general markup language is the extensible Markup Language (XML), being developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). XML may become a virtually universal markup language of the Internet in the future. Most producers of commercial browser have committed to supporting XML in future releases.
In detail, XML is a restricted form of the Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML), which is also designed for use on the WWW. XML has many potential applications such as separation of structure from presentation, intelligent searching, messaging formats, and data converters.
XML became a W3C recommendation in February 1998. See, e.g., World Wide Web Consortium, 1998, extensible Markup Language (XML) Version 1.0, Recommendation 10. The W3C is developing a number of XML-related standards. An important standard is the XML Linking Language, or XLink. See, e.g., World Wide Web Consortium, 1998, XML Linking Language (XLink), Working Draft 3-March. XLink describes linking information constructs that can be inserted into XML resources or documents to describe links between resources. XLink uses XML syntax to create one directional links (like HTML) as well as more complex multidirectional links.
Other XML standards include the extensible Stylesheet Language (XSL) being designed for presentation of XML documents. See, e.g., World Wide Web Consortium, 1998, extensible Stylesheet Language (XSL), Version 1.0. XML name spaces are being designed to provide a simple method for qualifying element and attribute names used in XML documents by associating them with name spaces identified by URI references. See, e.g., World Wide Web Consortium, 1998, Name spaces in XML. The Document Object Model (DOM) is designed for modeling document elements as objects and for providing an interface allowing programs and scripts to dynamically access and update document content, structure, and style. See, e.g., World Wide Web Consortium, 1998, Document Object Model (DOM) Level 1 Specification, Version 1.0. The XML Pointer Language (XPointer) is designed for reference to elements, character strings, and other parts of XML documents. See, e.g., World Wide Web Consortium, 1998, XML Pointer Language (Xpointer).
Accordingly, it is also important that browser functionality embedded in the application context be adaptable to HTML, XML and other markup languages being developed.
Citation of a reference herein, or throughout this specification, is not to be construed as an admission that such reference is prior art to the Applicant""s invention of the matter subsequently claimed.
General objects of the present invention are to provide methods and apparatus which overcome the above identified requirement and lacks in the current art.
Specific objects of the present invention include methods and apparatus providing configurable markup language browser functionality embedded in the context of a client-server application running on standard end-user devices. The browser functionality of this invention is configurable so that the network resources accessible by a user are restricted in order to focus the user""s attention to pre-determined relevant content. Such configuration may also be used to block possibly offensive documents. Further, the browser functionality is configurable so that certain users are prevented for utilizing certain browser features. The browser configuration and allowed network access are separately customizable for each user. This invention is applicable both to HTML and XML documents and also to documents formatted in emerging markup languages.
Accordingly, this invention includes methods and apparatus for browsing markup language documents from within the context of an executing application. This is achieved by embedded browser functionality that can be activated to display an embedded browser sub-window inside the main application window. While the prior art provides the same resource access rights and browser interface functions to all users, the present invention provides methods and apparatus where some users are allowed to access any resource on the public Internet or private intranets, while other users can only access the limited lists of resources set forth in the content of their user profile. Further, the functionality and appearance of the user interface of the embedded browser sub-window is also configured from information in the user profile. The administrator of the system in which an application according to this invention is installed can change the resource access and browsing function privileges of users by editing the content of their user profiles.
Network resource access is restricted by preventing the embedded browser functionality from generating linking information that is not allowed. In a preferred embodiment, a user with restricted Web browsing privileges is not presented any location field in the browser sub-window, into which URIs that are not allowed can be entered by the user. Also, in the preferred embodiment, if an allowed document is delivered from its server with links to other documents that are not allowed, these links are filtered from the document before it is displayed in the browser sub-window. Therefore, a restricted user can not access documents that are not allowed by activating displayed linking information. Such a user can access network resources only by allowed links present in displayed and filtered markup language documents. Optionally, the browser dynamically creates a personalized user home page listing all links allowed to the user.
Filtering methods are described for HTML and for XML, These methods can also be applied to other emerging markup languages, such as those being developed for consumer appliances. Preferably, the application is implemented in Java. If so, optionally, it can be an applet downloaded and executed in commercially available markup language browsers.
In a first embodiment this invention includes an apparatus for a user to browse markup language documents, the documents being stored for retrieval at one or more computer systems attached to a network and containing linking information representing resource addresses, the apparatus comprising: an end-user device comprising processor, memory, network attachment, and display, wherein the memory stores user profile records whose contents describe the characteristics and preferences of the user, an application program comprising (i) instructions for causing the processor to perform an application function which displays an application window including application specific controls and data, wherein the application specific controls are responsive to the content of the user profile records and comprise a browser control, and (ii) instructions for causing the processor to perform, responsive to user activation of the browser control, a browser function which displays within the application window a browser sub-window including browser specific controls and markup language documents, wherein both the displayed browser specific controls and any linking information retained present in the displayed markup language documents are responsive to the content of the user profile records.
In a first aspect of the first embodiment, this invention includes the apparatus of the first embodiment wherein the browser specific controls comprise a location entry field for entry of linking information representing resource addresses, and wherein display or not of the location entry field is responsive to the contents of the user profile records.
In a second embodiment, this invention includes a method for a user to browse markup language documents at an end-user device, the documents being stored for retrieval at one or more computer systems attached to a network and containing linking information representing resource addresses, the method comprising: entering user identification information, authenticating entered user identification information and loading user profile records associated with the authenticated user to the end-user device, displaying an application window at the end-user device including application specific controls and data, wherein the application specific controls are responsive to the content of the user profile records and comprise a browser control, displaying, within the application window and responsively to user activation of the browser control, a browser sub-window including browser specific controls and markup language documents, wherein both the displayed browser specific controls and any linking information retained in the displayed markup language documents are responsive to the content of the user profile records.